TEAM BCPS: News from Baltimore County Public Schools

January 31, 2017

Dr. Dance shares positive details about high school graduation rate

Great news! The four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate for Baltimore County Public Schools reached 89.2 percent for the Class of 2016, marking six consecutive years of gains. Dr. Dance thanks everyone in the Team BCPS community for making this possible.

Dr. Dance shares positive news in this update.

Help make our schools even better by completing annual Stakeholder Survey

BCPS wants to know what students, parents, teachers, staff and community members think of BCPS. Today through Friday, March 3, the annual BCPS Stakeholder survey will be available online at http://www.bcps.org/teamBCPS/stakeholder/.

The survey is anonymous and takes five minutes or fewer to complete on a phone, tablet or computer. New this year, the survey is available for students in Grades 4 – 12, parents, and community members in 16 languages.

Towson High Grade 12 student Aislinn Bratt organized a Student Member of the Board of Education information meeting to share more details about her role. She was joined by former SMOBs Deeksha Walia and Danielle Maduka.

Mission Moment

The BCPS Film Expo is returning in 2017. Such a valuable opportunity for middle school and high school students with a passion for multimedia storytelling.

Past participants said they were honored to have their films showcased in a theater setting. They share their experiences in the promo video below. The Film Expo is the subject of our latest Mission Moments blog post.

Parenting Tip of the Week:

Now is an excellent time to discuss report card grades and set academic goals.

Last week, second quarter report cards were sent home to parents. This is an excellent opportunity for parents to not only examine student progress but also discuss and set goals.

When doing this, remember to keep these details in mind: Report card grades are not just based on tests and quizzes but based on a body of evidence. Homework counts, and it should be completed if it’s graded or not. Some children will need more time to learn the same content.

Photo of the Week – from Timonium Elementary

Author Erin Hagar visited Timonium Elementary last week. She spoke at two assemblies, led a writing workshop and ate lunch with students. Hagar, who lives in Baltimore, writes fiction and nonfiction for youths and teens. We appreciate her taking the time to visit Timonium Elementary. The students enjoyed the opportunity to learn from a published author.

Correspond-DANCE

A weekly memo from the superintendent.

Dear Team BCPS:

First, a huge thank you to BCPS staff, students, and families for working so hard to achieve our 89.2% graduation rate for the Class of 2016, marking six years of gains. Students in all racial and ethnic groups are improving, and the gap between black and white students is gone. I couldn’t be more proud of our progress.

How do you think we’re doing? The BCPS Stakeholder Survey gives you the opportunity to tell us. In just about five minutes, you can give us anonymous feedback about your school and BCPS to help us guide improvement.

Don’t forget that the Board of Education will hold a work session on the proposed operating budget for the 2017-2018 school year, tomorrow, January 31, at 5:30 p.m. Learn more about the budget here.

Take care,

Dr. Dance

Happening This Week…

01/31 Board of Education budget work session at Greenwood

01/31 Varsity cheerleading county championships at New Town High

02/02 Student choreography showcase at Patapsco High

02/03 Day of Service at Loch Raven High

02/04 High School All-Honors Jazz concert at Walters Art Museum
Visit here to learn more about these and many other events this week.